Austin Read

Austin is a human geographer who works at the intersection of environmental, historical, and political geography. His previous research has focused on examining the political ecologies of biodiversity conservation, with the primary aim of developing more democratic and inclusive projects for nature recovery. Austin’s current research centres on a new project, which he is co-developing with Jamie Lorimer, that explores the historical geographies of land enclosure in Britain and their legacy in modern nature recovery efforts. He is also continuing to publish findings from his recently completed PhD research, which was a critical environmental geography of salmon conservation in the River Severn and the River Wye.

Austin joined the Leverhulme Centre in 2025, having been based in the University of Oxford’s School of Geography and the Environment since 2024. Previously, he earned his BSc, MSc, and PhD in Geography from the University of Bristol.